RIFT Forged In Flame Grillstream!

We're back from Pax South, where we had a BLAST meeting our fellow Ascended!

While there, we announced the date for StarFall Prophecy 4.1: Forged in Flames. We know you want, nay, NEED, more detail!

Now it's time to help Brasse grill Executive Producer Chris "Archonix" Junior over those very same flames for answers to your burning questions about this update... and maybe, just maybe, one or two hints on what else is coming in 2017. The team is still planning out the rest of the year, so we can't get into too many specifics while we stay on target for a March 1 release of 4.1!
Simon "DeadSimon" Ffinch will drive the game rig for this stream, lending his trademark sardonic commentary to keep things flowing slightly sideways.

- Will iRoTP it give you +275 hit gear?
- If so, is RoTP the only place to get +275 hit gear?

For both 10 mans, TSD and iRoTP:
- Will they use LFR and walk in modes like the current fortress siege?
- Will they make use of a weekly lockout + IR charges?
- What's the intended difficulty (i.e. CoA easymode for iRoTP, CoA hardmode for TSD)
- Will they both be released at the same time?

Hello Brasse, I've got a question for you. Do you think it's acceptable to release a producers letter so late into 2017? Why didn't Archonix write the letter before he went on vacation? This is very concerning to everyone who plays rift, it's completely unacceptable.

1 like

Originally Posted by Klutch817

"I don't like what you're saying, so I'mma get triggered and shame you somehow." ~RIFT Forums, 2016

More content is coming like bringing weekly quest back for level 70 players i hear? Can we elaborate if the same weeklies are coming back or will there be all new quests or a mix of new and old? Pvp weeklies are hopefully going to be included?
Oh and conquest! Since lfr and the new 10 man are a thing will pvp be getting CONQUEST back and some needed attention?

A couple times a week, I login to the PTS on my Mage to look at Legendary Firestorm to see if it is an aura as is listed above. Every time I look, it's still looks just like it does on Live. With it up, it prevents the ability to see the flooring and any mechanics that lie underneath it. Unless you turn off all particle effects, Spell Details and Spell Opacity, you're prevented from seeing the flooring and any mechanic indicators that happen to to be within the area. If one needs to turn off all the pretty effects, to be able to see the mechanic indicators, to me it seems then that spell/ability is designed incorrectly. Not too mention turning all those video settings off, defeats the purpose of even having them in the first place. Might as well go back to playing Ultima I, II, III or IV.

I can live with the slight decrease in FPS with that thing is up, but being unable to see the flooring, or when my back is to the wall when tanking and my vision is consumed with flames from a mage, is a bit too much. I much prefer to have my face inside the mobs head or stuck in their crotch.

It's even worse if it's an Elemtalist/Puro. With LFS running and a mage casts the Ele AoE on top of it. The floor literally ceases to exist visually.

TLDR - Is the LFS going to be an aura as is listed above, or will it continue to be a mechanics hiding ability?

Dimples • Warrior Tank* If she flashes her dimples at you, it may cause pleasurable blindness.Dweia • Rogue Tank* Nothing seems to express happiness quite as much as purring.Laurie • Cleric Tank* Life without Love, is like chocolate cake made without sugar.The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits. - Unknown

A couple times a week, I login to the PTS on my Mage to look at Legendary Firestorm to see if it is an aura as is listed above. Every time I look, it's still looks just like it does on Live. With it up, it prevents the ability to see the flooring and any mechanics that lie underneath it. Unless you turn off all particle effects, Spell Details and Spell Opacity, you're prevented from seeing the flooring and any mechanic indicators that happen to to be within the area. If one needs to turn off all the pretty effects, to be able to see the mechanic indicators, to me it seems then that spell/ability is designed incorrectly. Not too mention turning all those video settings off, defeats the purpose of even having them in the first place. Might as well go back to playing Ultima I, II, III or IV.

I can live with the slight decrease in FPS with that thing is up, but being unable to see the flooring, or when my back is to the wall when tanking and my vision is consumed with flames from a mage, is a bit too much. I much prefer to have my face inside the mobs head or stuck in their crotch.

It's even worse if it's an Elemtalist/Puro. With LFS running and a mage casts the Ele AoE on top of it. The floor literally ceases to exist visually.

TLDR - Is the LFS going to be an aura as is listed above, or will it continue to be a mechanics hiding ability?

I can answer this. Aura is an internal ability type that changes how it selects targets and how it does upkeep on doing damage (mostly relating to interrupting when pvp objectives are involved). This has literally nothing to do with how the ability looks. Your feedback about the art relating to Fire Storm has been noted however.

Hello Brasse, I've got a question for you. Do you think it's acceptable to release a producers letter so late into 2017? Why didn't Archonix write the letter before he went on vacation? This is very concerning to everyone who plays rift, it's completely unacceptable.

Last year's came out in early February so it's not too late relative to last year.

That being said, I would love to know what Trion's plans are for increasing the stability of the game, both with the physical game and the management of the community.

Right now, crashing, major bugs, extended downtimes, etc are a very prominent issue. What is being done to reduce those issues? I totally understand that games will have bugs, but this isn't just an occasional bug, this is consistent issues that last multiple weeks and usually result in workaround after workaround. What is being done to reduce the amount of live testing?

I think that should be a major focus this year and I think consistent and thorough transparency is required should Trion have any hope of reversing the damage. Delaying content to make it more polished is fine, if things come up at the last minute. Something needs to change. Either adjust your timelines or figure out a way to get the work done in the timetable that you have set.

Players are tired of hearing apology after apology and the only thing that seems to be changing is what gift Trion decides to give as compensation. Compensation is a good idea. It helps ease tension and represents sympathy and understanding.... When it happens once. Or twice. Now, and I imagine there are quite a few who agree with me here, I feel as though I am being taken advantage of. How much longer do you expect players to keep settling for your actionless words? It no longer feels sympathetic and understanding, but rather manipulative and dismissive.

Trion has a massive amount of work to do and the issues aren't going to go away if you ignore them. How long do you plan on dismissing your playerbase with excuses or reasons why everything is normal for game companies and how players saying otherwise are just trying to make the company look bad?

My question for Archonix?

When is someone at Trion going to stop with the ******** and act like they have any sort of clue how much they've ****ed up this game and this company?

11 likes

Originally Posted by TrionBrasse

We are absolutely a service industry and you're only as good as your last contact with the customer.

A. Will there be any alternative methods put in for obtaining individual rewards charges, or will they remain ungrindable outside of REX? With a new raid, peeps going to be acutely interested in at least the very basics of how gearing up works.

1. When are the Dev's going to remove all dead accounts? Using a 145 day inactivity model Faeblight would be so empty it would have to be recommended. Having a accurate count on who is actually still playing helps people recruiting for guilds and getting groups.

2. Will Trion go back to Pay to Play removing those from the game that only want to play because its free? Rift had a better community when people actually had to pay to play.

Ipost an Idea in December

In December I posted an idea for getting more patrons it is under suggestion on the forums. I was wondering if Trion was looking at something like that? It would bring a strong reason for us to become a patron. This game Rift that we all love and play was a far better place when it was pay to play. When are you going to clear the dead accounts and maybe merge the shards for more active play?

I appreciate Archonix coming onto the stream to answer questions so thanks for that. I am sure it might be somewhat daunting with the current mood of the community.

Why did Trion decide to have just 2-3 dungeons at the launch of the expansion.

Why were these dungeons tuned to be so easy

Are you honestly happy with the state of the expansion launch

The fragment system - It seems to have caused more confusion and frustration that excite the playerbase. Will this be revamped or perhaps RNG reduced significantly

Why are there not eternal items for all roles. Surely the great art team could produce items for all if they can produce items for sale during events and ToKs. This is an important and core feature after all.

Will conquest ever come back and if not do you see this as a failure

Will the warfronts rotate as promised?

Guild system is quite old at this point. Quests rewards were always quite poor and were outdated last expansion. Will we see revamps and additions any time soon such as guild rewards, involved quests as well as functional tools for guild masters such as tracking join dates, calander etc.

When are the primalist souls coming. - I would reccommend these be free for good will

Will you bee condensing all current soul packs into one for a cheaper price to offset the stigma the game has for entry

Will we ever see an in depth 5 man system and/or master modes again

When is the new zone coming?

What do you see Rift as? Is it a PvE focused game? Is it a casual mix type game? What does Trion want Rift to be?